The Family Effect
by laurzz
Summary: DannyLindsayLucy. post-ep for 8x13. "You must have contracted some short term memory loss, because I'm pretty sure I was raggin' on you earlier for exactly the same thing." "Climbing on the breakfast bar?"


**A/N: Well guys, it's safe to say that DL still got that banterin' down. I know it essentially turned into one case, but the writers literally made me the happiest person in the world by giving DL the other case and letting them work together in the field with no babysitter. It was like a blast from the past... safe to say that I was a happy girly. Sucks now that it's not on again till late March - I can feel the withdrawals already. **

**I'm not sure whether you guys know, but it may be worth a Google. I'm not sure who has put it together, but there is an online peitition at the minute campaigning for the renewal of CSI:NY for a season 9. I think it'd be really great if you could all go and check it out. The target is pretty high, but I think if we could all pull together, we could hit the target and CBS will then have no choice but to renew. So, have a look for me guys - go and sign the peitition, okay? I'd really appreciate it... because come on let's face it - no new episodes means no new opportunities for post-eps... and I don't quite know what I would do with my existence then, so really you'd be signing it for the good of my health. Honest. :p**

**Huge thank you to everyone who reviewed the last post-ep. You guys are fab; I'm glad you liked the mentions to my other stories. :) Special mentions to: **meggie, RandomTVFan30, 4everyoung, GigglesforCSI, shipperheart, CTI-Jenn, MesserFamilyFan100, Help renew CSNY, Izzi Creo, Hope06, brendanakai, 18lzytwner, Daisy1966, LoveIsInTheAir4DL and ILoveTheCubs.

* * *

><p>"Yo, Spidergirl, Daddy isn't going to tell you again. Get down."<p>

"No!"

"Excuse me? What was that? I told you to get down."

"No!"

"Linds! Will you come and deal with _your _daughter?"

Lindsay Messer sighed heavily as she stood from the couch and folded down the corner of the page she was currently reading. When Danny had said that he and Lucy would do the dishes while she relaxed, she should have known that as true as his intentions were, there wasn't much chance of her actually getting to relax. Making her way into the kitchen, Lindsay couldn't help the smirk that had crept onto her face as she watched her daughter shuffle her way across their breakfast bar. Judging from the bar stool that was crooked and the papers on the floor, her little protégé must have been feeling tree-climbing vibes from earlier in the afternoon.

"Lucy, I'm sure Daddy asked you to do something."

"No!"

"Is that the answer Mommy was expecting?" Lindsay raised her eyebrows and folded her arms over her chest. "Let's make a right decision here."

"No!"

"No?" Lindsay repeated. "We don't want to make a good choice? Alright then, that seems fair enough. How about then we take a time out?"

"No!"

Lindsay licked her lips as she cast a glance in Danny's direction; although he was frustrated, she could see the amusement on his face.

"Alright Lucy, I know that you're tired and you're really not meaning to be like this with Daddy and Mommy, right?" Lindsay didn't give Lucy much chance to offer an answer, or more specifically a 'No'. "So I'm going to take that into account, but even though you're tired, I think you know that we make kind decisions in this house, don't we, honey?"

"Yeah..." Lucy's little voice broke the quiet of the kitchen.

"So, let's give you another chance, okay? Let's see if you can make the right choice this time. Can you get down for me?"

Lucy nodded slowly and held out her arms. "Sowwy."

"Thank you," Lindsay nodded, "I'm not the one you need to say sorry to, but it's appreciated. You can apologise to Daddy after time out."

"What?" Lucy sniffed. "Whys?"

"Because," Lindsay set her daughter on her lap and made her way through the small family's apartment to the designated plastic chair in the corner of the room where Lucy spent some of her time at least daily. "Both Mommy and Daddy asked you to do something and you didn't listen to either of us, even though we gave you lots of chances. That isn't acceptable behaviour sweetheart, and you know better than that. Daddy was telling you to get down because if you had fallen, you could have really hurt yourself, and do you think Mommy and Daddy want that?"

"No," Lucy shook her head.

"Okay, so we've got two and a half minutes on the timer. When it's done, I'll be back. Have a think about what you need to say."

"Okies." Lucy sniffled sadly as she hung her head in shame.

Turning on her heel, Lindsay made her way back into the kitchen to converse with her husband about their daughter's antics.

"Thanks for that babe," he said once she'd made it back into the confines of the kitchen, "I woulda got her down, but my hands were soapy and I was terrified she was gonna fall."

Lindsay smiled as she closed the distance between them and wrapped her arms around his waist and pressed a series of kisses to his neck. "Don't worry about it."

"I know but," he sighed as she continued the assault on his neck, "I felt bad callin' you."

She shrugged as she scraped her teeth along his sensitive skin. "I told you, don't worry."

"I'm gonna have something else to worry about if you carry on. How long did you give her in time out?"

"Not _that_ long, if that's what you were hoping."

"A man can dream," Danny smirked.

"So how did she end up on the counter?" Lindsay asked dragging her teeth across his earlobe, whispering the words into his ear.

"You wanna knock that off?" he growled in a low, sultry voice. "Otherwise you're gonna have to go and restart time out, k?"

"I asked you a question," she said softly.

"I don't know," he shrugged in response, "All I know is one second, she was stood next to me with the dish towel in her hands, and then the next, she was scaling the counter. Like mother, like daughter."

"What?" She implored. "I haven't scaled the counter."

Danny turned in Lindsay's embrace and wiggled his eyes playfully. "Well, you have. Last week, remember?"

"I wouldn't be able to forget that." he turned as she hooked her fingers in her jeans and pulled the waistband down, just a little, to reveal a fading bruise just above her pelvic bone. "You got me good."

"Hey, we made a deal that I could brand you all I wanted, so long as it wasn't visible... and that is definitely not visible, thanks very much."

Before Lindsay could offer him a flirtatious response, the timer had gone off, and Lucy's little voice was calling for her mother. "Times up, back to our parental responsibilities," Lindsay smirked. "I'll be back. Get ready to be stern."

"Yes m'am." He saluted her as she sauntered off to retrieve Lucy from the time out chair. As she was retreating from him, he took the opportunity and grabbed Lucy's discarded dish towel and whipped Lindsay with it on the ass, just before she left the room, making her jump and squeal.

"What was that for?" she implored. "That really hurt, jerk!"

"Oh look, you're a poet and you didn't even know it."

She narrowed her eyes at him playfully before heading off to get her daughter. As she rounded into the living room, Lindsay couldn't help the smile on her face. Lucy was sat with her head hung and her hands clasped in her lap; looking awfully sorry for herself.

"Alrighty then little miss." Lindsay said as she dropped down to her daughter's level and broke Lucy's sad thoughtfulness. "What happened back there?"

Lucy shrugged sadly, "I just wanted to go to the park to climb."

"Do we climb onto bar stools and breakfast bars, Lucy?" Lindsay questioned.

"No," Lucy shook her head sadly. "I just sowwy."

"You're sorry? Well good, I'm really glad you've said that," Lindsay said softly. "Kiss and a cuddle?"

Lucy nodded and stepped off her little plastic chair before wrapping her little arms around her mother's neck and pressed a kiss to her cheek. "I say sowwy to Daddy now."

"Very good idea," Lindsay agreed as she kissed Lucy's little pink lips before swooping her up into her arms. "And then do you know what time it is?"

"Bedtime?" Lucy sighed heavily.

"It is indeed; maybe if you ask Daddy nicely he'll read you two stories tonight."

"Can you read them Mommy, Daddy doesn't do voices like you do."

"But it's Daddy's turn tonight," Lindsay said quietly. "Don't you want Daddy to tuck you in?"

"I want both of yous," Lucy replied in a whisper. "Can I?"

Lindsay smiled and nodded, "I think we can manage that."

* * *

><p>"Uh, like you can say a thing, Montana."<p>

"What?" She implored with a grin on her face. "I don't know what you're talking about , honey."

"You must have contracted some short term memory loss, because I'm pretty sure I was raggin' on you earlier for exactly the same thing."

"Climbing on the breakfast bar?" she implored with raised eyebrows, "Because if you cast your mind back, Sparky, I'm pretty sure you put me on there as you were undressing me so..."

"Wasn't actually meaning that, thank you." Danny smirked as he pulled his wife into his side while they settled down on the couch. "I actually meant in the park earlier today."

"Oh," she smirked. "Oh I'd forgotten about that."

"Yeah, I thought you had. I'll give you a damn snake." He growled. "I don't think I've ever moved so quick in my life. That wasn't a very clever move."

"You'd be singing a different tune had you been on my end. It was hilarious," she smirked. "I don't think you've ever screamed more like a girl before."

"Actually, I didn't _scream, _I just... moved."

"Like a girl," Lindsay finished without missing a beat.

"Alright, so I jumped a little... enthusiastically. Snakes aren't unheard of in New York, you know."

"Oh what?" Lindsay implored. "You're so full of crap," she smirked as she grabbed a handful of popcorn.

"Uh, excuse me." He said as he grabbed her hand and made her drop her popcorn before he pulled it towards them. "Exhibit A, could you explain to the jury what those two little scars are?"

Lindsay licked her lips. "A snake bite."

"Oh and where did you obtain that snake bite, Miss?"

"New York," she rolled her eyes.

"I rest my case," he smirked. "Don't give me that crap. You got bit right here in New York."

"That was different and you know that," she growled.

"So? You still got bit. Could have been a snake, and it was a mean move there Montana, you know how scared I am of snakes."

Lindsay bit her lip, trying to fight the smile on her face.

"What's so funny?"

"You," she laughed. "You'll fling yourself from a building, have molten glass hanging over your head and won't really blink; but the threat of a snake has you running from the hills; go figure."

"So if I tell you Lucy wants a pet tarantula, you'd be fine with that?"

"I sure would," Lindsay nodded.

"Bullshit," he implored. "You absolutely wouldn't be okay with that."

"Yes I would. It could live in the woods and it could be Lucy's daily exercise to try and find him... in the woods."

"I thought as much." Danny smirked. "We're missing the movie," he changed the subject slightly. "You wanted to watch this, so watch it."

"I am!" she implored. "I just... this bit, I love it, it's great considering it was the nineties and all that, but I just don't like how the camera is constantly moving. It's hard to keep up with."

"When was it made?"

"Ninety-eight." Lindsay replied. "Few years ago now," she smiled.

"Doesn't seem like two minutes," he replied. "Looking back now, it was just so ahead of it's time with like the graphics and CGI and stuff. And the cast is amazing."

"Could you imagine what it would have been like in 3D?"

"Amazin'!" Danny implored. "Shut up now, k? Watch it. Otherwise there's gonna be an Armageddon in here."

* * *

><p>Snuggling into Danny's side with a handful of tissues, she whimpered as Harry and AJ made the decent to the final task of the mission.<p>

"I hate this bit," Lindsay bit her lip tightly as an attempt to keep the tears from escaping; with no avail of course.

Danny, instead of offering her words of comfort continued on with his gentle fingertips running the length of her arm in soothing motions as she gripped onto his shirt with one hand, and her tissues in the other.

"Mute it!" She cried, "Danny, mute it!"

"I don't know where the remote is!" he replied as his eyes frantically searched for it. "Baby, come on, you can watch this, you've seen it a thousand times."

"No, mute it Dan, mute it!"

"I don't have it," he replied as she gripped onto his shirt while she hiccupped with her tears. "Just watch it honey,"

"But..." she sniffled as tears trickled down her face, "I don't want to watch it anymore."

"Come on, Linds," He said softly, "what you cryin' over it for, you know how it ends."

"But it's so sad!"

"Well, you knew that when you picked it," he reminded her. "It hasn't changed since the last time you watched it," Danny fell silent just as the scene that Lindsay desperately didn't want to watch filled the screen.

"_It's my turn now, you take care of my little girl. That's your job. I've always thought of you as a son, always. I'd be damn proud of you to marry Grace. Take care of yourself. I love you."_

Now at an uncharacteristically decibel of wailing, Lindsay buried her head into Danny's side, refusing to watch anymore of the scene.

"Hey, hey, come on... what you wailin' for, Linds? Don't be a wuss; Harry's savin' the world."

"I just..." she sniffled as her chest heaved.

"He sacrifices himself so that AJ can go and look after Grace." Danny explained. "You know this, it's good that he did that. AJ and Grace can live happily ever after and all that good stuff."

"Yeah but, why did either of them have to go? Why couldn't someone else have died?"

"It was so that they get this kind of reaction from people like you, Linds." He smirked. "They wanted wailing."

"I'm not wailing!" she scoffed.

"You are wailing," he wrapped his arms around her playfully and squeezed her.

"I just... I could imagine you saying that in like twenty years time and it pulls on my heart strings."

He grimaced, refusing to do the math of how old he'd be in twenty years time. "What makes you think I'm gonna be drillin' holes in Space, baby?"

"I didn't mean the same context, idiot," she scoffed. "I just meant... I don't know, doing that for Lucy. It just chokes me up because it hits close to home."

"Apparently," he smiled. "Well, how would you feel if I sacrificed myself so that Lucy could have a lifetime of happiness with her fiancé?"

"I'd be proud of you," she whispered, "but you're never going to leave me, are you?"

"Not in this lifetime," he informed her.

"So there's no need to worry, then, right? No impromptu trips to Space planned, no?"

"No in this year's schedule at least," he smirked.

"Good," she nodded as she cut the conversation short to watch the reunion scene between AJ and Grace. Danny glanced quickly in her direction to see tears, once again, spilling from her eyes. Smiling at his wife's incessant sobbing, he wrapped his arms around her tightly and grabbed another tissue from the box that he'd strategically placed on the arm of the couch. He wiped her cheeks and held the tissue around her nose, hinting for her to blow; something that he did regularly for their little girl. Lindsay turned after her cheeks were free from tears and her nose clear, and offered him a smile before pressing a kiss to his cheek.

If he could spend the next thirty years cuddled up with his wife and wiping her tears at sad movies, he knew for a fact that he'd die a happy man.

* * *

><p><strong>There we have it, the last post-ep for a while. Hope you guys enjoyed this one. And remember - go and look up the petition for season 9. You might just be able to make the difference! Let's keep this thing we have here going, okay?<strong>

**Thanks for reading guys, as always thoughts are appreciated! :) **


End file.
